Hey, my name is Sydney McLeod, and I am from Aklavik NWT. When I first found out about the program, I was hesitant at first, but I decided to sign up anyway because of all the fun stories I was told by one of my friends who went to last year’s program.
When I found out I was selected to go, I was excited and nervous at the same time. I didn’t know what to expect when I first signed up, but thanks to the help from my teacher and the NYA staff, there was nothing to worry about. The only time I was worried was when I was left behind in some of my assignments due to my being out on the land, but the NYA staff are very flexible when it comes to handing in assignments, so I didn’t have to worry too much.
When I first found out I was being placed in Winnipeg I was a bit nervous because I didn’t know anything about Winnipeg, But thanks to my amazing host family I had nothing to worry about. When we first met them, we didn’t know what to expect, but once we met them, they were very welcoming. Christine and her family are very nice, and she has tons of experience hosting people from around the world. It’s like a home away from home.
My work placement is also like a home away from home. When I first found out I was going to be working in a deli and doing a lot of food prep, I wasn’t too excited, but after a while, I got used to it and started to like it a bit more, but not enough to go to school for a culinary degree. Everyone I’ve worked with has been nice and very helpful when I’m unsure what to do. They always find something for me to do when I finish what I was doing.
Another thing is that NYA is really good with placement buddies. My placement buddy is Kyrie, and I say we get along really well. So far, we’ve been exploring the city a lot. The very first week we were here, we were walking around downtown and we found a really cool bookstore (picture below), the next week we also went to explore the Forks Market. And found a lot of cool things. We also got to go see the Rock of Ages play/concert. The next week, we also went to a cat cafe.
Long story short, I’m having a lot of fun thanks to Christine and her family, Kyrie and especially NYA for letting me have this experience! If you’re hesitant to sign up, don’t be; you might regret it.
